


Epidemic

by ScorpioSnoopy666, The_Secret_Life_Of_Tea



Series: SPG Shenanigans [2]
Category: Steam Powered Giraffe
Genre: Angst, Annoyance, Bickering, Disappointment, Fear, Fluff, Other, Sad, Sickness, danger of rust, robo-sickness is no fun, robot surgery?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-06
Updated: 2017-11-25
Packaged: 2019-01-28 21:10:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12615584
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScorpioSnoopy666/pseuds/ScorpioSnoopy666, https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Secret_Life_Of_Tea/pseuds/The_Secret_Life_Of_Tea





	1. Hangover?

Daylight swept the night sky away, bringing forth rays of golden sunshine and what looked like bright blue skies with very few cloud wisps in the atmosphere.  
Sunlight flooded through the chink in the curtains where they were not drawn, creating white and gold shapes on the floor and bedspread.

Sprocket opened her eyes, one hand to shield them a little against the light streams, sitting up and stretching a bit, running her fingers through her rumpled brown hair to finger-comb it. She looked around the room to gain a sense of familiarity, her thoughts through her wiring were interrupted by the sound of the two boys snoring beside her.  
She carefully left the bed to not wake them, tying the sash of the bathrobe around her waist to close the teal garment as best as she could, closing the bedroom door softly.

Peter Walter was waiting for the bathroom when Sprocket came out, holding shaving supplies. Despite the keyhole mask, she could hear a smile in his voice. “Good morning, Sprocket. Have you slept well?”  
“Indeed I did, Mr Walter. And yourself?” she asked with a small grin, the female the notifying him,“The other two are still sound asleep.”  
Peter gave a laugh, tweaking her nose playfully. “As well they should be. You all went to bed very late last night! And in some cases, some of you didn’t go to bed at all…” He gestured downstairs. Sprocket could see The Spine’s head wobble a little as he bobbed forward, then woke back up.

She looked over, mumbling an “Oh, for God’s sake”, and looking disapproving; the spitting image of Spine’s stare.  
“I’ll see if there’s any caffeine or coffee left” and with that she gave Peter a small wave, making her way to the kitchen.

Rabbit jumped a little at the sound of her in the kitchen, then gave a little groan. He seemed lethargic in a way Sprocket hadn’t seen before, and he coughed loudly, clearing his throat. “Hey, sweetheart,” he called, voice rasping.  
The Spine was barely aware of Sprocket’s presence, he was so out of it. “Huh?” His voice didn’t sound good, either.

She got the oil down, preparing to make the hot oil. “Good morning” she said cheerily, turning to them. “Are you two alright? You don’t look well”  
Rabbit winced a little at her cheeriness. “Some of us are a lil’ hung over, but fine.” The Spine nodded. “Yes, fine. Absolutely. Nothing to worry about.”

“Uuugh, what time is it?” Dex yawned, walking into the kitchen, still very much half-asleep.  
The Jon came bouncing into the kitchen behind Dex, beaming. “Ah! C'n I have some oil??? Please, pretty please with, um, cherries on top?”  
“Coming right up” Sprocket chirped, her soft-spoken voice showing happiness, and beginning to make a round of oil for them all.  
Dex sat at the table, almost falling asleep again.  
“Mmmph~ it’s too early” he groaned.  
“Oh come off it, cuz, it’s like half 9 in the morning” Sprocket giggled.  
“Exactly” came the tired reply.

Rabbit hacked into his sleeve loudly, clearing his throat uncomfortably. “Ow,” he muttered. The Spine looked like he was about to cough, but thought better of it at Sprocket’s concerned face. Instead, he held it in, face puckered. Sprocket frowned a bit, concerned as she looked at her metal family.  
Dex’s eyes widened a little in alarm, a hand on his father’s shoulder.  
“Whoa, easy there!” he exclaimed in concern, rubbing Rabbit’s back lightly as Sprocket set the oil down; as a little joke, she’d put a cocktail cherry on top of The Jon’s oil. She chuckled softly, sipping her hot oil.  
“Yeesh, ya might cough up a gear if you’re not careful, Pops” he added.  
“I’m fine,” he grumbled, but his voice was weak and his chassis overly warm against Dex’s hand. “Leave me ‘lone.”

The Spine bursted into a harsh, sudden, and rather loud coughing fit. He gasped in air as it went on, and boy, did it go on… it lasted a full sixty seconds. “Urgh…”  
The Jon ate the cherry happily, but slopped oil on the floor as he startled. “Big brother?” he asked, worried.  
“Dad! holy smokes!” Sprocket exclaimed, rushing to his side, now very scared and concerned. Alarm bells seemed to go off inside them, though not literally of course. Dex’s circuits seemed to generate more impulses to make him act quickly, Sprocket’s gears ticking like a time bomb.  
Dex looked at Jon.  
“Get Mr Walter, and quickly!” he told the golden automaton over the wi-fi, being careful to conceal the message from Rabbit and The Spine. Sprocket gently put a finger to Spine’s forehead, taking the temperature of the metal; it was hotter than usual. Perhaps it was the heat rush from the coughing fit, but this was now starting to alarm the young’uns.  
What would a treatment be for a coughing fit if the sufferer was an automaton? best to play safe and keep the oil and water handy.


	2. Diagnosis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In case you guys are wondering about Sprocket's 'compartment', it's pretty much from her chest -above where her bodice starts- to her mid-torso, and it's hollow but the gears and boiler run underneath it. She hides it under her cardi. Just imagine how Bender's storage compartment from Futurama works; it's like that but a little smaller.

Sprocket set down two cups of hot oil with a cough drop in each of them, collecting the empties and putting them in the sink, switching her hands for rubber-gloved ones and turning on the tap.  
“I think later y-y-you should try and go into stasis for a few minutes or so. It may-may help a bit” she told them.

The Jon quickly scampered away, and Rabbit watched him go, disgruntled. “Wh-where’s he goin’?” he asked.   
He pushed the cup away. “I ain’t drinkin’ that.” Rabbit was stubborn as a mule and twice as ornery when he was sick.  
The Spine, meanwhile, sipped at his oil wearily. “Thanks, sweetheart,” he said to Sprocket, giving her a kindly smile.

At Rabbit’s stubborn remark, Sprocket rolled her eyes, but left the cup there. It was true, Rabbit was indeed stubborn, but at times she could be just as adamant.  
“No problem” she replied to Spine, looking up when she heard The Jon come back with Peter, Dex waiting for them in the hallway.  
“From what we could tell, this ain’t just a normal hangover” Dex told him, folding his arms and leaning against the wall.  
Subtly, Sprocket took out a nurse’s headband from her compartment, putting it on after she closed it, Dex snickering at this, only to be answered by Sprocket saying “what?”  
“Nothin’, just looks cute” he replied.   
“Tch” Sprocket tried not to laugh, smirking lightly as she put the headband away with a small "thunk" in her chest compartment.

Peter approached the two bots, coming over and laying his hand on The Spine’s forehead. The Spine relaxed against his touch, finally showing his exhaustion. “Peter, I don’t feel so well,” he admitted, and Peter nodded. “I think you’ve got the crank cough, boys. It happens when your gears grind against each other and create rust. I’m prescribing lubricant and bedrest.”  
Rabbit hopped up. “No way,” he declared. “Y-Y-You’ll hafta tie me down first.”  
Peter raised an eyebrow. “That can be arranged" he shot back.

“Dad, don’t ya wanna get better?” Dex asked while cocking an eyebrow, hands in the pockets of his trackies, a black zipped up hoodie over his top half and dark red hi-tops.  
“I don’t want cha ta be ill, same with uncle Spine. I mean what if it gets even more bad and spreads if nothin’s done?” he supposed. Knowing he probably was going to get a snippy response, he shut up and looked at the parental automatons.  
Sprocket’s optics looked innocent and sad; the “kitten” eyes as Dex called them.  
He often fell for them, maybe they’d work on the elder robots.  
“Please? for us?” Sprocket asked, Dex gently but subtly nudging The Jon to copy her, eventually being the last to portray the ‘eyes’.

The Spine, who was caught in the gaze, immediately fell for it. “Oh gosh, of course, kids! I’ll try my best to get better, don’t you worry.”  
He was a sucker for cute kids, he just couldn’t help it!  
Rabbit, though, was still obstinate. He coughed grumpily. “No w-w-way, Dex, means no way.”  
The Jon bit his lip, looking at Dex and Sprocket for guidance.

Dex sighed in an irritated way, facepalming and leaning against the wall again, Sprocket glanced at him then The Jon. She gave him a reassuring smile, standing up straight with her hands clasped in front of her torso.  
The ‘teens’ could hear the Walter Girls walking around in the hallways, some of them talking to each other. Sprocket’s body made the mechanical “Click-click-click” sound when she turned to the door -similar to when the other robots looked around- and saw Miss Chelsea come into the kitchen, going over to talk with the human.

Dex glanced at Rabbit sideways, his eyes locking onto his parent’s, his virtual visor was on again.  
“Suit yourself, I guess” he replied moodily, going off to his room to get dressed for the day.  
“Dex!” Sprocket called, receiving no answer. She let out an audible “Uugh” for a second and went back to cleaning the dishes.  
“My apologies, Rabbit. I’ll try and find him later" she sighed, glancing down at the dripping wet dishes in her rubber-gloved hands.


	3. Even robots cry sometimes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sprocket tries to cheer the others up, The Jon finding out she hides her emotions...leading to her heart, or core and ticker, being poured out to her golden brother. Involving her backstory....  
> Headcannons: The Jon has synthesia (seeing sounds) and soaks up people's emotions like a sponge. Sprocket, on the other hand, represses her emotions at times to keep others happy, and has PTSD from an event in her past, making her experience sleep paralysis and bouts of depression.
> 
> Warning: this may be a long chapter due to the backstory involved :3

Rabbit glared after the retreating figure, angry because he was so darn tired and so gosh darn sick. He kept the snarl on his face even when Sprocket looked concerned.  
The Spine, for his part, got up and went right to the couch, laying himself down for some much-needed rest.  
“Thanks for being the best daughter anyone could ask for, hun,” he smiled at her.

Sprocket chuckled softly, gently covering Spine with a fluffy red blanket and kissing him on the forehead.  
“That’s alright” she said modestly. She went about unscrewing the rubber-glove hands and leaving them to drip-dry, replacing them with glove-less tin hands that matched the natural colour of her ‘skin’.  
Since the washing-up glove hands were practically covered in plastic, there wasn’t much worry of them rusting.  
She then looked out into the halls, following the metaphorical trail where Dex had stormed off and hearing his door slam, unable to help letting out a “tsk” while wearing a sad smile.  
“What am I gonna do with you boys?” she asked somewhat jokily, going off to get dressed herself.  
Sprocket hummed “I’ll Rust With You” as she made her way down the halls. She got into her usual outfit, her hair down and hat on, grabbing her ukulele on her way out of her room and back to the lounge.

Rabbit glared at her too when she got back, the dirty look seeming to sear through Sprocket's tin chassis.  
“No one’s gonna make me go to bed of I don’t wanna.” He sounded rather childish, but he didn’t much care. No one was gonna make him do anything.  
The Spine pulled her into a quick hug, then let her go, flipping on the TV set to a show about the history of artificial intelligence.

Sprocket raised her hands in defense, not wanting to annoy Rabbit further.  
“Ok. Nobody’s gonna make you d-do anything-thing-thing-thing -” welp, looks like the voice programming decided to glitch. What better time, eh?  
Miss Chelsea walked behind her and gave the female robot a sharp strike on the back between the shoulder blades, the impact fixing the slight glitch as if Sprocket had been a faulty stereo rather than a functioning automaton.  
“-Ow! anything. *ahem* heh, t-thanks, Miss Chelsea” Sprocket said gratefully, Miss Chelsea bobbing a curtsy and walking out the room.

He grumbled, then coughed hard for a few moments, settling back into his chair. Usually a stunt like that would have him laughing his head off, but not right now.

Sprocket looked at Rabbit, feeling a bit downtrodden that she couldn’t really cheer him up. Nonetheless, she kept an optimistic smile on her face, not wanting to bring the three down any further. One hand was curled around the fret board of her ukulele.

The tin automaton female left the room to relax and play a few songs in the foyer, one of them was notably “Captain Albert Alexander” and another was “Seven Years Old”. A smile crept onto her black lips as she played the tunes.  
The Jon wandered in, swaying a bit to the music. He sat down in front of the wall cheerfully, watching something there in front of him.  
His eyes roved back and forth, and he laughed, sighed, moaned… it was as if he was seeing a very good movie.

Sprocket’s playing faltered a little when she looked over at what The Jon was supposedly looking at, before glancing at the frets again so she didn’t screw up the end of the song. Dex clattered downstairs and went to another room with the instruments, plugging in his turntables and the keyboard both he and Sprocket shared. The thumping of faint hip-hop music could be heard...even felt through the wall and floor.

The Jon sighed again, then looked at Sprocket, eyes glowing bright blue with binary running across. He cocked his head. “You’re sad.”  
Sprocket looked at The Jon, still smiling, though it waned a little no matter how she tried to keep it up.  
“C-course I’m not, The Jon. I’m fine” she replied, tapping her fingers on the wooden part of the ukulele absent-mindedly. A few hollow wooden noises were heard after the gentle tapping, like knocking a coin against a wooden crate.  
“No,” The Jon mused. “No, you’re definitely sad. You went all blue in my mind’s eye– your voice is all blue instead of magenta.”  
She gulped and bit her lip, looking down with one leg crossed over the other.  
“I’m j-just worried about the guys, that’s all. Nothin’ to fret over” she replied unconvincingly with a gentle but nervous sounding laugh.

Dex played on the turntables in the music room with his headphones on, oblivious to the oil tears brimming dangerously in Sprocket’s eyes. She blinked them away stubbornly and straightened her posture with a whir sound. The Jon frowned at his tin sister sympathetically, pouting a little himself.  
He came over to her, placing both hands on the sides of her face. He cupped her face gently and leaned in, putting his forehead up against hers. Suddenly Sprocket could see all the times in the past few weeks that she forgot to smile or else looked sad when no one was watching. The Jon pulled back after a few moments, peering at her curiously.  
All those memories came flooding back, her grip loosening on the instrument which fell to the floor with a CLUNK. A choked sob escaped her lips and she held onto the Jon tightly in an embrace, her chassis trembling.  
“I’m sorry, this i-isn’t like me” she whimpered, sniffling and quietly sobbing, hoping nobody could hear. “I-I tried to be strong for you guys, but it’s s-so hard.”

The Jon pulled her in close, thin arms winding around her tight. “And that’s okay,” he murmured to her. “It’s okay to be sad sometimes. What’s been going on?”

Sprocket’s ‘breathing’ was choppy and her body jolted a little with a couple of hiccups.  
“I guess just…… my worrying over the others…. bad memories…. the fights and arguments…. I mean, I don’t wanna make you guys sad or angry. N-Not intentionally” she whimpered. “I suppose it can’t be helped, though, it’s n-natural to feel those things.”  
She wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her jacket.  
“God Almighty, guess I s-shouldn’t hide these things, some of them are s-so trivial. But…. I thought I was doing something good by keeping them r-repressed and bringing out joy for everyone, that’s all.” 

The Jon rubbed her back gently, shushing her softly. “It’s not good to not let yourself feel, Sprocket,” he chastised, frowning and acting as if he was the big brother temporarily, as if Sprocket was his little sister. “You most definitely shouldn’t hide these things! And… us Walter bots also have troubles with emotions and stuff. It happens sometimes because of the war. Thank god I wasn’t part of it…” he murmured the last part, glancing a way before their blue optics connected again.

“I know, I know” Sprocket sighed, sniffling again. “Yeah, I’m glad I wasn’t either, but…something horrible happened many many years ago. It still haunts me to this day, sometimes I wake up in the night paralyzed because of it!” With an anguished sob -and no attempt to mask it- she covered her face with her hands.  
“Why did I let myself be pushed on that boat?! I could’ve helped him!! I could’ve helped him! Instead I watched him die!! Dying alone on that cold port and…hearing that gun….” she exclaimed, her body shaking as she sobbed more violently.  
“……didn’t even say goodbye…. I'm such an un-loyal creation...”

The Jon held her. “I’ve seen you dream of him at night. Who was he? I don’t know him, but I’ve seen his face many times in your dreams.” The Jon looked gravely serious. “You don’t have to tell me if you’d like not to, but… if you ever need a listening ear, I’m right here for you.”  
“T-thanks, Jonny. You’re the best brother ever” she replied with a sad smile. Exhaling a steam that carried the scent of wood smoke and rosemary, she prepared to reveal her past to The Jon.

“He was called Cyril Jonathan Harvey. Just like Mr Walter, he made robots and new technology for the people of England. He wasn’t a married man nor was he a rich man, but he was so kind and so very smart. Many people in the seaside town located in Sussex where he resided, even humans i-in London knew about him and his business.  
He created me to be a street performer and singer, but also to serve the role of his own mechanical daughter, which is why I called him “Father” when I wasn’t being formal. It was a happy life, until he was robbed one ghastly September night.  
The two main workers, Chasity and Orville, they helped him fend the rogues off, but not long after that, the workshop was set on fire and it incinerated most of his creations.  
Under cover of night, he took me to the harbour and put me on a ship with other cargo, before…..he got shot by one of the criminals who’d burnt his workshop. It was horrifying, to say the least. On that ship, I sailed with the other cargo for months, years, before I washed up in America, where Spine found me wandering near the manor one night. That’s why I call him Dad, since he took me under his wing and I s-sort of became like his own.  
That is why I’m now known as Sprocket Walter. Before that, I was Sprocket Harvey” she concluded, not noticing her tears had been falling down her cheeks during the story.


	4. What is this, an epidemic?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> welp, looks like the epidemic is spreading!

The Jon nodded thoughtfully. “I’m so sorry that happened to you… where was Dex in all this? And I’m really glad you’re here with us, Sprocket… you help us smile.”  
“Some time after I arrived, Spine informed me that there was work being done on something big. Something powered with electricity as well as the Walter core. It was the era Cyberpunk was king, and there I saw come to life Dex Walter, the Cyberpunk DJ ‘droid with a cocky but cool attitude.  
At first we were very wary of each other, but over time we grew to like each other and call each other ‘cousin’. Since Rabbit was one of the first robots he saw, he i-immediately imprinted and got attached to him in his own way.” Sprocket replied, smiling through her stubborn tears at the memory of Dex's creation. How miraculous it was. How she got another family member she could confide in and relate to.

Rabbit sniffled from the doorway, having heard every single word.  
“Gosh… I’ve been so mean to him… I gotta go apologize,” he declared, coming over to kiss Sprocket on the forehead. He bent down and hugged her. “Uncle Rabbit’s gotcha.” he said fondly. He ignored the oil stains on his cheeks, a gentle hiss of steam following his dialogue.

Sprocket spun around, hugging Rabbit around the middle. Though she was about 5'8 -taller than average for a female- she was still smaller than many of the robots in the manor; a couple of times her male relatives took the mickey out of jest -apart from The Jon, of course, who was usually too sweet for his own good-, though she was up to Dex's jawline. In fact, one time she resorted to standing on a box to reach the Spine’s height.  
“O-oh! Hi” she said, a little shocked about Rabbit appearing out of nowhere. “H-how much did you hear?”

“All of it,” he said sadly, sobering up, and then he set her down to cough hard. A bit of oil came out. “U-Unh…”

“Oh dear! Umm..” Sprocket placed her ukulele on a table, turning to her golden brother. “The Jon, go fetch Peter. And a bucket” she instructed, guiding Rabbit to sit down on one of the couches in the foyer near the wall. “It’s gonna be ok” she said, taking Rabbit’s hand.  
Rabbit looked up at her, lips coated in flecks of rust. He seemed absolutely exhausted. “Don’t feel so good,” he grit out.

“Ssh…. I know, we’re gonna get you through this. Don’t worry” Sprocket reassured him, gently rubbing his back to soothe him. She used her thumb to wipe away any oil and rust around Rabbit’s mouth, wiping her hand clean on her black skirt.  


Dex came into the doorway and very nearly went into Standby-Mode when he saw how sick Rabbit was.  
“Dad!! Oh my god!!” he exclaimed, walking over to them briskly and sitting beside Rabbit, his arms around him. Sprocket could feel Dex’s hand on her arm.  
“What happened to him?!”  
“S-se-seems like his s-sickness is growing worse” Sprocket responded, Dex’s brow crinkled.  
“I told you so-” he started, Sprocket cutting him off. “Not now, Dexxy. “Ok, ok. I’m just worried, that’s all.”

Rabbit rested his head on his arms with a small groan, ready to drift off into stasis. Peter came in holding a bottle of viscous, thick antifreeze; Rabbit’s nose wrinkled. “I don’t wanna take that.”  
He curled away from the medicine and into Dex. “Don’t w-worry, kid, I’ll be jus’ fine. Ain't no sickness that can beat this old boy.”

The electric male 'droid chuckled softly, nuzzling the copper bot. “I know, but this is for your own good, Papa” Dex reminded him. “God, I sound like a mom!”  
Sprocket couldn’t help but snicker at this comment.

Rabbit groaned aloud again, sputtering when Peter just popped the spoon into his mouth. “ACK! Ugh, that stuff is the W-W-WORST!” he exclaimed in disgust, sticking his tongue out a little.  
Dex laughed a little at Rabbit’s reaction. “Yeah, I know, it’s rank!” he piped up, trying not to laugh again. Sprocket gave a nod of ‘thanks’ to Peter before getting some oil for Rabbit to get rid of the strong taste.

Rabbit took the oil gratefully. “Thanks, kiddo,” he said, and got up to go write songs, or go to the duck pond, or do something that wasn’t being fussed over. Peter put a firm hand on his shoulder.  
“Stay there, Rabbit" he ordered.  
“But I–”  
“No.”  
“I jus’–”  
“You’re just not going to go anywhere.”  
“And if–”  
Peter mimicked Rabbit to the point of near perfect impersonation: “And if y-you think that you c'n stop me you’re sorely mistaken! Yes, well, I don’t think I can stop you, I know I can.”

Dex and Sprocket looked at each other and shrugged. Sometimes there was no convincing Rabbit to do things, both of them knowing that at the best of times Rabbit hated being fussed over, or “mother-henned” as he nicknamed it.  
He was as stubborn as a mule the majority of the time, Dex and Sprocket having some of that spark in their own systems; however, Dex was more defiant most of the time, especially when it came to being told what to do.

Dex’s ice blue eyes showed concern though it was concealed by his usual neutral expression, Sprocket hearing Peter Walter walking away and The Jon coming back.  
She gave Rabbit’s shoulder a firm squeeze, getting up and walking to her room. If robots could turn pale, she would’ve done so there and then, the tin female beginning to feel rather queasy. Just like Spine, she gave a few coughs, softly retching at the end of it, making Dex cringe in a revolted way. The door creaked open to her room and she collapsed on the bed.

“What is this, an epidemic?!” Dex murmured to himself.


End file.
